


Near-Death

by frozenCinders



Category: Death Note (Anime & Manga)
Genre: Gen, Near Death Experience
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-07-25
Updated: 2019-07-25
Packaged: 2020-07-19 19:35:47
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,266
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19979392
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/frozenCinders/pseuds/frozenCinders
Summary: The fucking mask didn't help.





	Near-Death

The fucking mask didn't help.

That's about the last coherent thought Mello manages before his body, damaged beyond anything he'd ever thought to experience, goes on autopilot. His phone wasn't on him when he ran; probably got destroyed in the explosion. He hadn't stopped running, still doesn't until he collides with a phone booth and staggers inside, breath completely eluding him and legs promptly failing him. He doesn't even think about the number he dials. Thank god someone spilled a few coins on the ground here.

"... Hello?"

"I n-- come pick-- I don't know where--"

He can't breathe, he can't think, the pain fades in and out in powerful waves. Oh, he's about to pass out. He's about to die.

"What? Who is this?"

"Matt," Mello manages hoarsely.

"... Mells? Why are you calling me from this phone? I didn't recognize the number."

Mello loses the ability to do much else but blink and slides the rest of the way down the phone booth to sit uncomfortably on the ground. Matt is calling for him. Mello just stays blinking slowly. This is the most vulnerable he's ever been.

After one of his blinks, he numbly realizes he's changed positions. Someone is pulling him up. Someone is babbling madly in clear panic. He's helped into someone's car and hugged tightly like this is the last time it can happen.

When next he comes to, Mello's mind is clear. He's not at 100%, but he's lucid enough. Matt is _still_ going on and on, voicing his stream of consciousness to the vet he'd taken Mello to. Ah, this is the one from when Mello got shot dealing with the cartel. He'd take one measly bullet hole in his side and a graze past his ribs again over this any day.

"Oh my god, shut up," he complains once he thinks he can trust his voice. It's not firm and confident like usual, but hearing it at all should calm Matt down.

He literally fucking sprints to Mello's side, taking his hand in both of his own like some guy in a TV drama holding his dying wife's hand. Mello got fucked up from the explosion, yes, but he'll live. He jerks his hand out of Matt's grasp just to show he can, and sits up for the same reason.

"I'm _fine,_ " he says, "so calm the fuck down already."

"I'm surprised you're so energetic," the vet comments. Mello learned his name once but doesn't remember it. "Maybe it would be best to hold off on showing him."

Showing him what? Mello's hand comes up to his face because that's where the pain is and his instinct, for some fucking reason, is to touch it. Ah. That.

He'll have to brace himself for the sight of it. For now, he just silently agrees that he doesn't need to see it. Amazing how numb he is to everything right now, always having been the passionate one. Mello predicts his emotions catching up with him all at once later on. Something else to brace for.

"Am I free to go?"

The vet presses his lips together and pretends to look around.

"You're not under arrest," he quips. He doesn't ask questions, but he's got a weird attitude. Mello doesn't give a shit right now.

"Mello, are you sure you're good to go home..?" Matt asks him as he approaches to help him stand. Mello sets his pride on a low simmer and allows Matt to help him walk just to speed the process up a bit, considering most of his left side is still in agony. The vet makes some joke about health insurance. Mello flips him off without looking back at him.

Matt speeds him home and Mello can't even give a shit right now, just props one foot up against the glove box to keep inertia from having its way with him and tunes out Matt's incessant talking in favor of trying to remember that damn vet's name.

"... Devon, that was it," he mumbles idly as Matt runs a red light in broad daylight.

"You're not taking me to the fucking emergency room, Matt," he tells him. "Slow the fuck down."

"I don't-- how-- how are you okay?" He eases up on the gas a little, only because Mello told him to. "Like... don't get me wrong, I'm glad you're here, but... mentally, I mean-- and physically, but, like--"

"How are you more fucked up by this than I am?"

Matt finally goes quiet. He even starts obeying traffic laws, waiting at a red light now with his turn signal on and everything.

"I'm helping," he says. Mello takes a moment to register what he means and suddenly finds himself slammed with the passion that had temporarily eluded him.

"No the fuck you're not. I told you, this isn't something you can fucking hack your way out of or some shit, Matt. You're not getting involved with the Kira case." He's just as firm as when Matt had first approached him about it years ago.

"I don't care. You're out of help."

"Out of-- Matt, I'll fucking find people! If you get killed by Kira, I'm gonna fucking beat the shit out of your fucking dead body! I _told_ you not to follow me out, I _told_ you to stay out of trouble, I--"

"I'm alive so far."

"Don't fucking interrupt me!"

They're just parked in the driveway at this point, the car completely silent aside from Mello's angry screaming.

"Matt, you're the _one_ fucking person. You are the _one_ person I give a shit about, and you're just gonna fuck off and let Kira kill you because I got burned?!"

Mello chances a glance at the rear view mirror. He has his right side to it, so he doesn't get a good view of the damage. He doesn't dare adjust.

"Just what the hell do you think I'm planning to do, Mello? I'm just breaking the "no Kira shit" rule. I'm still your behind the scenes guy."

And so they've swapped, Mello notices. Just moments ago, Mello was the eerily calm one while Matt was in hysterics. They always have to fucking balance each other out, don't they?

Behind the scenes, though... If Matt stays hidden like he normally does, this might not be so bad. It's true that Mello has nobody else to rely on at present. Matt remains the single constant in his life, aside from his goal of catching Kira and beating Near. Now, the two aspects finally meet.

"Keep the goggles on. They might hide your face enough from the Shinigami eyes, I don't know," he relents.

"Are you kidding? I would, like, cry blood if I took 'em off anywhere Kira could see me, anyway."

Right. Since when does Matt ever take those off? Even keeping his house dim as hell doesn't do anything because he always has some brightass screen up to his face. No wonder his eyes always hurt so bad.

Calm enough, he supposes, Mello finally pulls the handle and kicks the car door open. Matt collects his keys from the ignition and follows him out. It feels like any other time they've come home together, no matter how many homes they go through. No matter how close to death Mello just came.

Mello wanted to do this on his own, with no help from the other successors. Matt has always been a special case with Mello, though. This was inevitable. It was always going to come down to him and Matt. It always does.

Time to think of a plan.


End file.
